1. Field
Exemplary embodiments of the present invention relate to a method for fabricating a non-volatile memory device, and more particularly, to a method for fabricating a three-dimensional non-volatile memory device including a plurality of memory cells that are stacked on a substrate.
2. Description of the Related Art
A non-volatile memory device retains data even though power is turned off. Diverse non-volatile memory devices such as a flash memory device are widely used.
Meanwhile, as a two-dimensional non-volatile memory device where memory cells are disposed in a single layer over a semiconductor substrate reaches the technical limitation in increasing the integration degree thereof, a three-dimensional non-volatile memory device where a plurality of memory cells are formed along the channels protruded vertically from a semiconductor substrate.
The three-dimensional non-volatile memory device may include a memory layer surrounding channels that are stretched in a perpendicular direction to the substrate, and a plurality of inter-layer dielectric layers and a plurality of gate electrode layers that are alternately stacked along the channels. A plurality of inter-layer dielectric layers and sacrificial layers may be alternately stacked and the gate electrode layers may be formed in the space from which the sacrificial layers are removed.
According to conventional technology, the memory layer may be attacked/impacted in the process of removing the sacrificial layer, and a charge blocking layer, a charge storage layer, or a tunnel insulation layer that are included in the memory layer may be damaged, thus deteriorating characteristics and reliability of semiconductor devices.